HARTFORD, Conn. — When Jackie Haggerty was just 7 years old, she huddled by her cubby in her second-grade classroom as a gunman tore through neighboring classrooms, killing 20 of her schoolmates and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School.
Nearly a decade later, Haggerty stepped in front of hundreds of people gathered at St. Mark’s Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday evening to share her story of survival ahead of remarks by President Joe Biden, who is slated to join scores of activists, advocates and survivors — many from Connecticut — for the 10th annual National Vigil for All Victims of Gun Violence.
The vigil, hosted by the Newtown-based grassroots organization Newtown Action Alliance, is held in the nation’s capital every December to mark the anniversary of the tragedy and call on Americans to honor the memories of those killed by taking action.
